[Undeniable Interests] The Wrong Brother [Octavius]

[Hadrian]

"Ah yes," he said, nodding. He knew a bit more about the Windoak than the average citizen. When he was granted six leaves of the Windoak in order to complete a set of magecrafted gems for the Knighthood the previous season, he had sat staring at the leaves with his Auristic vision for a good long time, examining as much of their aura as he could. He was a competent Aurist, but no match for his professors in Zeltiva still. His best guess was that the ancient tree was a relic monster, but a beneficent one. At least, he hoped it was. "Many things come to me in meditation, but you will indeed be blessed to have the Windoak speak in your mind." Upon Octavius' reminder, Hadrian nodded vaguely and tried to pull his thoughts in order. Perhaps someday he would have earned the right to study the Windoak in person and learn what might be learned from it. "I was considering traveling up to Avanthal once the weather was better, but it's not a firm plan. I have to speak with some contacts among the Knights. They might have more work for me depending on how well my previous work turned out for them."

[Octavius Fellguarde]

“Avanthal?” Octavius chuckled. He enjoyed the warmth of Syliras and couldn’t imagine the appeal of being surrounded by so much snow and ice. He could appreciate the beauty of Winter, but wasn’t particularly upset to see it go. When Hadrian began speaking of his meditation, Octavius was reminded of something he had been meaning to ask. “This may be presumptuous of me,” he stated hesitantly, “but might I ask why you choose to study the arcane?” Like all men, Octavius had his prejudices. He was extremely skeptical of magic and even more so of those who used it. He simply didn't understand what made a man want to pull back the veil and unravel the very fabric of reality. He still remembered the stories he and his brothers used to tell of a mage who had given too much and lost control; erupting into a brilliant stream of fireworks. It was only a children’s story, but it reflected the ignorance and suspicion that commoners often held about magic. He was educated enough to shed that ignorance, but the suspicion remained. He quickly reasoned that talking with an actual mage was the only way he was going to overcome his prejudice. He had once considered speaking with Devandil Nightshade, but something about the Symenestran magecrafter unnerved him. He was just so ... inhuman.

[Hadrian]

"Avanthal," he agreed, then laughed a bit at his own expense. "I haven't been there since I was a child, and I don't know... I thought the inclement weather would keep me indoors and working. If I were a greater success with the ladies, I might spend those hours keeping warm, but... I would probably end up working." His smile faded a bit as he thought about Octavius' question. He didn't frown, for he was used to fielding this question, but something about Octavius made him think it over again, unearthing extra information. "I've always wanted to know more," he said cautiously, "and I suppose the more I learned, the more I wanted to know. I want to know the minds of the gods, to understand. It seemed like the most direct route to that understanding. It's like you get a glimpse of something, or the trail left by something... unimaginably big, and so you follow the trail, learning more about it by the path it takes." He shrugged, looking away, a bit uncomfortably. "I just want to see. Or maybe I just wanted to upset my parents." He laughed, playing away the honesty. "They wanted me to be a merchant prince of the same cloth as my father. Verus was all right because his novitiate made a link between the family and the Knighthood, and that's good for business." His father, he felt. was that Machiavellian. "I'm the black sheep and I have a restless mind." He shrugged again and turned back to Octavius, wondering how it would all be taken.

[Octavius Fellguarde]

In Octavius’ opinion, Hadrian seemed far more personable than Verus had led him to believe. Still, he could feel a bit of tension rise in the room as he questioned him. He understood that there was a thin difference between inquisitiveness and nosiness, but he often couldn’t help himself once his interest was piqued. He nervously ran his fingers through his hair, wondering how the magecrafter might respond to his impromptu interrogation. To his surprise, Hadrian seemed to response positively enough after a brief moment of hesitation. Octavius felt like he understood Hadrian a bit better after listening to his response. He didn’t seem like a man obsessed with thaumaturgic power. Rather, he seemed to view magic as a means of understanding the world around him. He was simply a man who hungered from knowledge, but was far to imaginative to feed his appetite through study alone. Octavius found himself intrigued by the man and desired to see what he could actually do. Unfortunately, he couldn’t ask Hadrian to start doing tricks like some sort of street performer. Especially not in such a public place. “I have clearly misjudged the appeal of studying magic! To be honest, I wanted to ask you for a demonstration of your talents,” he admitted “but I have orders to get in some sword and shield training before sundown. I should be heading back to the training grounds...”

[Hadrian]

Clearly Hadrian had misjudged Octavius, and he wondered how his brother had made such a friend and yet still had a block to understanding Hadrian himself. It made him wonder if he had been Verus' age, if he would not have had a true and real friend growing up, but that thought would lead him down dark roads, so he ignored it and attempted a modest smile and shrugged. "There are mage-knights among you," he said. "I work with Ser Theo Darkbrow on occasion." He considered for a moment and smiled almost whimsically, which looked odd on his generally serious face. "I could come with you. Show you a thing or two, lob blasts of water at you to block with sword and shield..." It was a strange sort of offer, uncharacteristic of the young enchanter, but he seemed enchanted by the idea of a young squire accepting him if not understanding him entirely. There seemed to be more in common between them than met the eye, and he was intrigued. "Unless fraternizing with a magus might make you look bad..." There were always those.

[Templar]

Hadrian: Rhetorics: 3 - Philosophy: 2 Lore: Octavious: Rhetorics: 5 - Philosophy: 2 Lore: